Noviceguitarist wrote:
I think the problem must, as you said, be the lack of stamina. How would I improve my stamina? I've practiced 3 hours a day since I started, my routine includes lots of chords, barre chords and scale runs and usually when my hand tired I'll switch to barre chords brocken up by scale runs.
Is there some sort of exercise tool you can use to improve the flexibility of the hand ligaments/tendons?
Might sound counter-intuitive, but try some rest. If you really have been practicing 3 hours per day for a year, you might not be getting enough rest to let your muscles recover and your strength to develop.
I was having a similar problem earlier in the year, and the fact was I was playing too much. I took about a week off, worked on some theory etc. and when I came back my fingers suddenly felt so much more fluid, and a lot stronger.
Also: make sure you're applying just enough pressure to sound the chord, and not more than that. I was also applying way too much pressure, and the result was that I would get tired halfway through a practice, and be unable to barre anything properly until the following day.
